ParkIT and other innovations target efficiency by predicting future spaces, connecting drivers with unused parking, maximizing off-peak times, and more

(Alexandria, Va. – July 5, 2016) Imagine a future of fully connected transportation, with self-driving cars that efficiently navigate into easily predictable spaces. Thanks to innovations like ParkIt, winner of the Park TankSM competition at the International Parking Institute’s 2016 Conference & Expo in Nashville, Tenn., that vision is quickly becoming a reality.

Sponsored by IPI’s Smart Parking Alliance and fashioned after the popular reality ABC-TV show, “Shark Tank,” the competition’s five finalists pitched their innovative ideas to an expert panel and parking-industry audience.

Jennifer Ding sold the winning concept: a computer vision software that uses existing camera infrastructure to provide accurate parking data in outdoor environments. Recognizing that most parking operators can’t afford to install and maintain sensors on every stall, the system’s cameras each scan up to 100 spaces, while a web dashboard analyzes utilization, turnover, and stay time to extract more value from their spaces and make forward-planning decisions.

ParkIt was rewarded with invaluable exposure to parking industry leaders, municipalities, and investors at both this year’s and the 2017 IPI Expo and Conference in New Orleans, as well as advertising and editorial in The Parking Professional, the industry’s leading monthly magazine. All finalists were given feedback on their innovations by the panel of “sharks” before the audience was polled for the People’s Choice Award, which went to RideHop.

“Last year’s inaugural Park Tank competition proved to be a unique opportunity for technology pioneers to showcase their innovations to a receptive and eager audience,” said IPI CEO Shawn Conrad, CAE. “The competitors have gained tremendous exposure, but the real winner is the parking industry as the recipient of such incredible ideas applied to challenges that affect us all.”